


The Curse of the Gift

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Drama, F/M, Romance, post-episode
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-05-10
Updated: 2012-05-10
Packaged: 2017-11-05 03:30:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/401976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He had to have the darkness so that so many families might be able to see the light.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Curse of the Gift

**Author's Note:**

> SPOILERS FOR PROFILING 101!!!!

He pulled the car up in the driveway, cut the ignition, and sat there. He didn’t want to go inside. He didn’t want to go inside because he knew that she was going to try to make it better. She always tried to make it better, which was one of the many reasons that he loved her. But nothing could make it better. 

He couldn’t even have hating his birthday to himself. Lots of people hated them, for oh so many reasons, but Dave was sure his was the worse. He was going to have to contact Charlotte’s family and tell them the monster that came to their nightmares took her away. He would have to be strong for them, offer solace that was impossible. They did it for the families, for closure. 

But there was never truly closure for any of them. Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. Dave fought the urge to beat the steering wheel into submission. 

It wasn’t going to change anything. It was over; it was done for another year. Tomorrow he would deal with the ramifications just like he did every May 10th. Maybe he wouldn’t sleep tonight but it was almost time for Charlotte Davis to rest in peace.

Taking a deep breath and grabbing the FBI file, Dave got out of the Suburban. He went up to his house and then inside. Well she didn’t jump out screaming surprise so that was a good start. He reactivated the alarm before walking through the downstairs. There was no Erin in the living room, dining room, den, or kitchen. 

He did find a covered platter with a note on it sitting on the counter. Dave picked it up and opened it. ‘ _I baked cupcakes. I didn’t think you'd have an appetite, which turned out to be a good thing since only six survived. I love you, Erin_.’ That managed to bring a smile to his face. 

He lifted the silver platter and found four chocolate cupcakes with butter cream icing. Dave wanted to eat one; he wanted to do it for her. But she was right; his appetite was nil. He only ate the fast food on the way home because he knew he’d need something to hold down the liquor. No point in being drunk _and_ sick.

In the den, he went straight to the bar. No need for the light stuff tonight. Dave poured himself a healthy glass of Glenfiddich. He held it up, toasted the ones who were no longer with them for whatever reason, and drank down half. Then he poured more in his glass. 

Upstairs, Dave went straight to the master bedroom. She was there and looked lovely in her satin pajamas. Mudgie was on the bed with her and Dave stood in the doorway a while looking at them. Erin was busy on her laptop. He didn’t know what she was doing but whatever it was it held her attention.

“Hey baby.”

She looked up, smiling as her glasses slid down the bridge of her nose.

“Hey there, Agent Rossi.” She put the laptop down and got up from the bed. “I was just thinking about you.”

“I don’t know if that’s good or bad but my ears were ringing.”

Actually, it was that damn song that was ringing in his ears. If Rossi never heard Happy Birthday again it would surely be too soon. He walked into the bedroom, his wife met him halfway, and she held him in her arms. All he could do was exhale and hold on.

Erin knew what this did to him. She didn’t want him to make a deal with the devil. She sympathized with victim’s families and knew it hadn't been an easy decision but she was dead set against it. How could this psycho even be trusted? How did he get to live when over 100 women had died by his hand? 

She never wanted to be in that position, not knowing if her child was living or dead. But the air smelled a little fouler as long as Thomas Yates was still breathing it. Knowing that son of a bitch he might outlive them all. And he’d stolen so much from Dave already. There was over 15 years hunting him only to finally take him down. 

And when the demons went back into their hiding place, dormant but never gone, he came back. He came back and offered the hero an offer he couldn’t refuse. Yates knew that; played Rossi like a fiddle. Rossi had to let himself be played. He had to have the darkness so that so many families might be able to see the light.

“I love you.” she whispered. 

There was no point in crying. She’d done that last year, tried to stop the tears but it was useless. She thought that might have upset Dave even more than the psychopath’s game. So this year Erin sucked it up. She had to be there for him, not the other way around.

“I love you, baby.”

“How was the class?” she asked. Erin took the scotch and put it on the bedside table. He was coming back for that and she would let him have it when he did.

“Look out for a kid named Zimmerman one of these days.” Dave smirked. “I liked his pluck.”

“You can spot a future agent a mile away.”

“Ten miles is visibility is good.”

Erin smiled as she undressed him. She took off his sports jacket, dress shirt, shoes, slacks, and finally his socks. When he stood in front of her in just his tee shirt and boxers, she held onto him again.

“I'm going to let go soon.” She said.

“This is me not complaining.”

“I'm just…” Erin sighed. “I said I wouldn’t.”

“Don’t.” he replied.

“Did you at least have dinner?”

“On some planets what I ate would constitute dinner, yes.”

“Do you want to take a shower or maybe a bath?” she asked.

“Not without you.”

“I've already showered.”

“Then the answer is no. I think I just want a little time alone…maybe I’ll do some writing.”

“Do you want me to go into my room?”

Mudgie looked up when she said that. Dave already knew that face. His own dog was telling him to buzz off. He’d rather cuddle with Erin than be with Dave who was a total buzzkill right now anyway.

“No baby,” Dave kissed her nose. “I’ll go down to the study and you stay right here. You seemed to be into something on your laptop.”

“I'm just playing Words with Friends. I want to ask if you're alright but you'll say yes no matter what.”

“I'm not alright.” He admitted. “But I will be. I'm gonna write for a little while, have a little more to drink, then I’ll come upstairs, wake you, and have earth-shattering birthday sex.”

“It might not be your birthday anymore when you come back.”

“OK, we’ll have earth-shattering Thursday sex.”

“You got it.” she managed a smile. It didn’t make it all the way to her eyes but she did it anyway. God, Erin just wished she could take all the pain away.

She let Dave go and he went to the dresser to pull out pajamas. As she went back to her laptop, he finished undressing, throwing on blue pajama pants and an FBI Academy tee shirt. Despite how it ended it had been a good day. A four hour round trip drive and a few minutes with a psychopath weren’t going to make him forget it. He spoke with the next generation today. 

More than half of them didn’t have what it took. But he saw a couple of faces that he felt he might see again in the future. And that was another reason he did what he did. He lectured, taught, wrote, and worked because one day he wasn’t going to be here anymore and there would still be people out there who lived to hurt others. Dave needed to make sure he helped the next generation prepare for what they would have to face. He got to do that with his team and while initially he wasn’t sure if that was going to be the best idea, he now knew that there was no other way to do it anymore.

“I’ll be back.” He grabbed his scotch and leaned to kiss her.

“I’ll be here.” She caressed his face and then rubbed Mudgie’s head. “Go with Daddy; go, go, go.”

The retriever jumped down from the bed. He walked over to Dave and the profiler bent to pet him. Halfway to the door, Dave turned back and looked at his wife.

“Erin?”

“Yes?”

“Just say it.”

“You don’t want me to. I don’t have to.”

“You want to, and that’s what matters most to me at the moment.”

“Are you sure?” she asked.

“Yes.” Dave nodded.

“Happy Birthday, David.”

“Thank you baby.”

***


End file.
